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ABOUT OUR SITE: 43rd State Blues: Democracy for Idaho is a website of, by and for Democrats and those who lean towards Democratic, progressive causes. If you do not fit this broad category, or are simply anti-Democrat, we suggest you find a website more suitable to your ideology. Our house, our rules. Enjoy!

POCATELLO — James Rutherford said an altercation with police that resulted in Pocatello detective Steven Westfall being charged with assault by an officer and Rutherford being transported to the hospital started when he turned on the video camera on his cellphone.

Rutherford said he went to the IRS office at the Omni Building on 275 S. Fifth on July 10 to pick up a tax form for the financial aid office at Idaho State University. As he waited, a security guard asked him if he was carrying a knife. Rutherford told him he was not.

“He asked what was in my pocket. I told him it was my phone, and he asked if I would submit to a search,” Rutherford said. “I told him that I would not. He told me that I had to leave, and I told him that I was a tax-paying citizen and I had a right to be there.”

An exchange on the Idaho State Journal site encapsulates the dillemma for far-right extremists who want to side with the "good officer" over the "bad guy."

Ray Doe
Yes this young man could have prevented all of this in my opinion, according to what we have heard so far. If he would have allowed the security officer to do a search on him then it would have been a done deal. However the question is, what caused the security officer to question the guy in the first place and what made that security officer want to give him a body search..? I'm not taking sides for the individual that was arrested, but I'm not taking sides for any of the officers involved either. Is quite apparent that there was an officer that overstepped his boundaries on video , and without that evidence the officer wouldn't be facing charges himself!

Adam Stone
Ray Doe You don't have to "allow" an illegal search. At least that's not the America I want to live in.

Detective Steven Westfall is being charged in connection to an arrest made on July 10, 2015. According Police Chief Scott Marchand, during the arrest Westfall allegedly used unnecessary force to subdue the suspect.

"What do you think should happen to Westfall for this incident involving a suspect? Should he lose his job? Should he be convicted of assault?" the Idaho State Journal asks.

Republicans “need to reject this demagoguery. If we don’t, we will lose and we will deserve to lose,” McCain said, telling the New Yorker that he was certain once GOP primary voters learned more about Trump, he’d lose support. “He was a big Democratic supporter,” McCain pointed out. “Some of this stuff is going to come out: he gave more money to Democrats than Republicans, he had Hillary Clinton at his wedding. You know, he’s attacking Hillary Clinton after she was in the front row of his,” McCain recalled, shadily adding “I don’t know which wedding it was.”

Well that's finally the most thorough report yet of the incident. But it still omits a key fact that Cox bonded out for $1000 the following Monday without charges for the beating and was on the lam for a week. That's some significant negligence that deserves to be reported upon for public accountability. The Idaho Statesman should know that I made repeated requests to the Post Register as to why they omitted this information and the fact that Cox's mother is a former IFPD employee. They told me that they didn't want to ruin their relationship with their police contacts. When I observed that they were putting their personal relationship with the police over the duty to their readers, the Post Register banned me from their facebook page and deleted my comments. The Statesman might question future reports from the PR and perhaps put their own reporter on the story.

James Kent has made a number of posts here asking about apparent omissions in the reporting done by the Post Register about the killing of Josh Olzak. I have followed those posts closely. They were probing questions encouraging the Post Register to press the IFPD for details about why they released the prime suspect after apprehending him the night of the attack. Mr. Kent's posts were civil, professional, and free of vulgarity. They in no way violated the Facebook Terms of Use.

Why then has the Post Register deleted those posts and blocked James Kent from posting on this page?

UPDATE: 1:51 p.m.
James Kent said:

From the Statesman. They posted part of the information and then decided to censor me as well.
----------------------------------------------
Thanks, James. We checked with the newspaper and the court records and I've added a reference to Cox bonding out, as well as his new bond. I've also gotten more information about their reporting so far, and am comfortable with keeping this story on our site.

If you have a concern with the Post Register, I'd ask that you work directly with them. We're not interested in allowing our comments section to help spread unsubstantiated allegations about anyone, regardless of whether they're other media or not, and I'd ask that you not use this page to do that. Until I'm given a better reason to believe that the paper is improperly withholding details, I'm going to hide this post from public view.

Kevin Wilson said:

If Nate Poppino is going to delete every comment that contains "unsubstantiated allegations" then he had better pack a lunch. He's going to be a very busy little worker bee for a very long time.

UPDATE: 11:44 a.m. MST. My orginal blog headline stated $46 million, because I was using the fact that "roughly $16.1 million will immediately stop once Idaho is out of compliance. An additional $30 million is also in jeopardy because compliance is also tied to the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families."

Rep. John Rusche, D-Lewiston, said, “This is a bill of immense, immense consequences to the state of Idaho, to the state but mostly to the children of the state of Idaho, those that depend on child support payments for keeping body and soul together.” His voice cracking with fatigue, Rusche told the House, “This bill is required so that we can participate in the federal child support system. Without that participation, it will be very difficult, maybe impossible, to collect the over $200 million in child support payments that our Health & Welfare Department collects and dispenses.

"Republicans have been accused of abandoning the poor. It's the other way around. They never vote for us." - Dan Quayle

Stranger than fiction.

But alas, this is Idaho ...

An Idaho House panel voted 9-8 on Friday to kill legislation to bring the state into compliance with federal child-support collection rules after some lawmakers said they were concerned about Sharia law influencing Idaho's enforcement authority.

Idaho child support program director Kandace Yearsley said the committee's decision has placed Idaho at risk of losing nearly $46 million in federal child-support funding as well as access to the federal enforcement tools used to collect child-support payments from parents living in other states.

And of course ...

But some members of the House committee said they were concerned the bill was tied to an international convention regarding cross-border recovery of child-support payments. Rep. Heather Scott and Sen. Sheryl Nuxoll, both Republicans, said they feared the bill could force Idaho to enforce child-support rulings made under Islamic law or foreign tribunals.

However ...

Deputy Attorney General Scott Keim countered during Friday's meeting that none of the countries involved in the Hague Convention on International Recovery of Child Support and Other Forms of Family Maintenance —which Idaho entered into in 2007— are under Sharia law.

"I don't know of any other state going through this," said Yearsley, visibly shocked minutes after the committee voted. "There's no prior case. We are the first." Yearsley added that the committee's actions not only risk Idaho losing access to state enforcement tools but also risks the United States from being disqualified from the convention. This is because the convention requires that all states agree to be in compliance in order to participate, she said.

And as usual, those Republicans are really looking out for needy families (end sarcasm)

According to a letter from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, roughly $16.1 million will immediately stop once Idaho is out of compliance. An additional $30 million is also in jeopardy because compliance is also tied to the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families.

The party of personal responsibility just let deadbeat parents off the hook and assured all those children will now have to go on government programs for food and health care. Brilliant strategy Napoleon. No hypocrisy there. Fiscally conservative is not fiscally responsible.

"Here's what the right-wing has in, there's no shortage of the natural resources of ignorance, apathy, hate, fear. As long as those things are in the collective conscious and unconscious, the Republicans will have some votes." - Janeane Garofalo read more »

I have implemented a swear jar in my house. As a mother of two teenage boys, and one preteen boy, I needed some help to reduce the foul language. In fairness, my kids have heard me utter many of the words they say, and my husband can be a swearing machine. Swearing, it turns out, can be a very powerful force, for both positive and negative reasons. This is a lesson learned recently by Alex Labeau, President of Idaho’s most powerful lobby group, IACI. read more »

Idaho taxpayers don’t get a good deal when elected leaders let cronies and campaign contributors cash-in on state contracts.

As the Department of Justice investigates the sordid mess surrounding crony-ridden contracts for statewide school internet–commonly known as the Idaho Education Network scandal–Idahoans can glimpse how expensive Gov. Otter’s administration has been to schools and kids.

That illegal IEN contract made schools scramble to keep the internet going. But, once let out of a bloated state contract, Idaho schools and kids saw immediate benefits: better service and less-costly service.

North Idaho school districts say collapse of network contract is actually benefit

Far from leaving them in the dark without service, the demise of Idaho’s multimillion-dollar statewide school broadband network has brought several North Idaho school districts better service at a lower cost.

“We’re getting more bandwidth now than we did before,” said Seth Deniston, technology director for the Coeur d’Alene School District. “We’re definitely paying less.”

“It’s a lot cheaper than I thought,” said Tom Taggart, business manager for the Lakeland School District.

In fact, at least five North Idaho school districts were able to quickly transfer their broadband service from the troubled Idaho Education Network to local Post Falls firm Ednetics at big savings. And they increased their broadband speed.

“It appears we were being overcharged for the services provided,” said Senate Finance Chairman Dean Cameron, R-Rupert. “And obviously one of the silver linings in this whole issue is that not only will we reformulate what the IEN looks like, but we’ll have an opportunity for it to be more competitively bid.”

The statewide network, which linked every Idaho high school with broadband service and videoconferencing, collapsed last week after a judge declared the state’s $60 million contract with politically connected firms Education Networks of America and CenturyLink illegal. Lawmakers quickly approved a $3.6 million stopgap funding bill to cover costs for local school districts to find their own vendors for Internet service to replace the IEN.

Boise, Idaho— Much is riding on a slow, inefficient, and mostly ineffective group that has harmed the prosperity of Idaho workers, families, businesses and cities.

Yes, the GOP-dominated Legislature is in full swing.

A toxic dynamic in the Capitol has GOP politicians bullying each other into rejecting good ideas when they come from Idaho Democrats—and Idaho Democrats find those ideas by listening to We the People!

Recall how Gov. Otter flew to Pocatello during his 2014 campaign to brag about a tax incentive that lured Amy’s Kitchen to town. That program arose from the dogged work of Sen. Roy Lacey (D-Pocatello) and Rep. Donna Pence (D-Gooding). For years, GOP politicians rejected the incentive program until they found a way to claim it was their idea all along.

Most Idahoans agree that it was a good idea to create jobs in Idaho. You are welcome, Gov. Otter.

• If your good idea goes to a GOP politician first, it will probably take longer to see daylight.

Idaho’s GOP politicians run scared of a small, vocal group in their base that likes to slash and cut and burn. That group doesn’t care that we need a functioning, efficient government to maintain roads, bridges and communication routes. They don’t care that it harms businesses and workers. That small, loud group also disputes the indisputable value that a topnotch education delivers to our kids, our communities, our businesses and our futures.

For this year and next year, this slow, inefficient, mostly ineffective system is our only option.

Don’t take my word for it. Just watch what happens in Boise. As the Majority bangs the drum on divisive social issues, you will see issues important to Idaho’s future swept under the rug.

Watch as the Majority boasts about education investment—hoping we forget how deeply they cut education in the first place. Today, we remain at the bottom of the nation in education investment.

Watch as higher education leaders plead for wiser investment. Did you notice how chilly the Majority was to the University of Idaho president’s suggestion that the state cover workers’ raises so he could stop tuition hikes on students? The Majority isn’t concerned that regular Idahoans are being priced out of opportunity.

What can we do about the Majority’s antipathy toward good ideas that help We the People?

We can keep working hard and smart—which is the Idaho way—and we can assist the media in holding the Majority accountable. Let’s help that news reach every corner of the state.

Then, in 2016, we will have another shot at turning this system into a balanced one that welcomes good ideas—no matter who has them first.

I've noticed many more middle aged, fit-looking white males casually riding bikes around Boise State University's campus today. And there are guys squatting and staring at the ground for long periods of time (and they do not have the usual BSU maintenance uniforms on).

I am glad they are working to keep our president safe.

This will be my fourth time seeing a sitting president.

Regardless of who holds the position, it is always a special experience. There is something about watching the White House staff, the White House Press Corps, and whatever glimpses of the presidential motorcade or Air Force One you may receive, that reminds me of the awesome power of the office itself.

Here's my list of being around U.S. presidents in person:

1) As a reporter, I covered Bush the first, speaking in NJ at a fundraiser for Gov. candidate Jim Courter (who lost to Democrat Jim Florio).

2) Pre-Lewinsky and at one of the heights of his popularity, I shook hands with Bill Clinton on Martha's Vineyard at the fair.

3) I waved to Hillary and Bill outside an Oak Bluffs, MA bookstore and they waved back.

Student tickets sold out. Then I went onto the faculty line, and was informed that my ID, which works for everything else, would need to be updated to get a ticket. I was nervous about missing this, and thought for a bit:

If nothing else, at least my ID will be updated.

This presidential experience is unlike any other. Mostly due to security reasons, details are always sketchy. We just found out today that doors open at noon, but Obama may speak as late as 2:45. I recall Clinton being as many as five hours later than door openings -- of course, with no advance warning.

I recall stories from friends who worked in stores and restaurants on Martha's Vineyard in the 90s. They told of secret service agents marching in to their places, kicking walls, hitting the ceiling with poles, going basically where they wanted -- then leaveing and saying, "Thanks." The president would often arrive minutes later.

At BSU, know one knows very much. Just the raw basics. When the POTUS says he's coming to your place. He is coming. That's the long and short of it. Your job is to adjust.

I also remember watching, outside of that bookstore, some Press Corps members getting pasted by two secret service agents, who took them down like linebackers. They had ignored warnings to "step back."

Clinton was was much more likely to come and work the crowd than either George W. or Barack. But I can't say I blame them. Times have changed.

It is scary in some ways, when I think about so much power in one institution. But part of me is happy that even in the current world of violence that we live in, the president can still come and see us here in Podunk Idaho.

I recall a skit years before Obama was known, sometime in the 1980s. It may have been Eddie Murphy who parodied how things will be for our first Black president. He joked about him having to make any public speeches for less than two minutes with his head bobbing and weaving, and then running away from the audience and back to the armored car.

If nothing else, at least that didn't come true.

If you're in Boise Wednesday, come see me. I'll be the starstruck fan.

Many states can no longer afford to support public education, public benefits, public services without doing something about the exorbitant costs that mass incarceration have created. - Bryan Stevenson founder and Executive Director of the Equal Justice Initiative.

The United States has the highest incarceration rate in the world.

A few years ago, the NAACP released a new report, Misplaced Priorities, that examines America's escalating levels of prison spending and its impact on state budgets and our nation’s children, according to naacp.org.

Misplaced Priorities tracks the steady shift of state funds away from education and toward the criminal justice system. Researchers have found that over-incarceration most often impacts vulnerable and minority populations, and that it destabilizes communities.

The report includes these startling facts:

• The majority of the 2.3 million people incarcerated in U.S. prisons and jails are people of color, people with mental health issues and drug addiction, people with low levels of educational attainment, and people with a history of unemployment or underemployment.

• The nation’s reliance on incarceration to respond to social and behavioral health issues is evidenced by the large numbers of people who are incarcerated for drug offenses. Among people in federal prisons, people in local jails, and young people held in the nation’s detention centers and local secure facilities, more than 500,000 people— nearly a quarter of all those incarcerated—are incarcerated as the result of a drug conviction.

• During the last two decades, as the criminal justice system came to assume a larger proportion of state discretionary dollars, state spending on prisons grew at six times the rate of state spending on higher education.

Thus, I was pleased to see Reps. Raúl Labrador (R-ID) and Robert C. "Bobby" Scott (D-VA), authors of H.R. 3382, the Smarter Sentencing Act, commending the Senate Judiciary Committee for approving S. 1410, the Senate version of the bill.

The Smarter Sentencing Act would reform criminal sentencing laws, empowering judges to make individualized assessments in nonviolent drug cases. This would ensure that limited resources are focused on the most serious offenders, while maintaining public safety.

"The Senate Judiciary Committee’s passage of the bill today is a step forward on this important legislation," said Scott.

“Granting federal judges more discretion in sentencing for nonviolent drug offenses is the right thing to do. Studies of mandatory minimums conclude that they fail to reduce crime, they waste the taxpayers’ money, and they often require the imposition of sentences that violate common sense. This bipartisan, bicameral bill targets particularly egregious mandatory minimums and returns discretion to federal judges in an incremental manner," Scott continued.

"While the Senate Judiciary Committee's action today is an important step in updating sentencing policies that are not working, the amended bill, unfortunately, includes three new mandatory minimums," Scott added.

"If this amended bill passes, we will end up with more mandatory minimums than we started with. The primary purpose of this legislation was to reduce the negative impact of mandatory minimums since they cost taxpayers too much and do nothing to make our families and communities safer. I hope the House Judiciary Committee will act on the original version of the bill."

Raul Labrador (R-ID)

Labrador said he was pleased that momentum continues to build for this common-sense bipartisan legislation.

“There is a growing realization that the ‘one-size-fits-all approach’ to criminal sentencing has tied the hands of judges, hurt the cause of justice, and increased the burden on taxpayers, without making us safer. I appreciate the Senate Judiciary Committee for acting quickly and effectively, and I will keep working with my colleagues in both the House and the Senate to get this bill passed through Congress and become the law of the land.”

During the past 30 years, the number of inmates in federal custody has grown by 500 percent, with nearly half of them serving sentences for drug offenses. Spending on federal incarceration has grown by more than 1100 percent. Today, it costs about $29,000 per year to house just one federal inmate. The Smarter Sentencing Act could save up to $1 billion in incarceration costs.

The House-version of the Smarter Sentencing Act would do the following:

Increase individualized review for certain drug sentences

It would lower certain drug mandatory sentences, allowing judges to determine, based on individual circumstances, when the harshest penalties should apply (while not repealing any mandatory minimum sentences or lowering the maximum sentences for these offenses).

Promote sentencing consistent with the bipartisan Fair Sentencing Act

It would allow certain inmates sentenced under the pre-Fair Sentencing Act sentencing regime to petition for sentence reductions consistent with the Fair Sentencing Act and current law, while not automatically reducing a single sentence.

The Smarter Sentencing Act is endorsed by Heritage Action; Justice Fellowship of Prison Fellowship Ministries; ACLU; American Correctional Association; American Bar Association; NAACP; Constitution Project; and other organizations across the ideological spectrum.
SOURCE: Official Website of Robert C. "Bobby" Scott.

The Idaho Democratic Party receives some very negative messages from those who call themselves supporters.

Here is a suggested response to these missives:

Dear Angry Democrat,

We received your reply to our fundraising solicitation. While we appreciate the time it took for you pen a handwritten note, it still lacked specifics that we can use to better evaluate our progress and make adjustments

You said you would be willing to donate if “we got off our dead asses, and started doing something.” In fact, we have been running an aggressive program to recruit excellent candidates, raise the funding needed to assist them in their campaigns, and help grow local Idaho Democratic parties.

You saw this work at play with very competitive candidates we fielded for statewide seats this past year. Though we are also dissatisfied with the results of the election, we in fact weathered a national pro-Republican wave that hurt candidates in every state.

Idaho is one of only seven states NOT to lose seats in the Legislature—in fact, we bucked that trend by gaining a seat. We also expanded, by 15, the number of county seats now held by Idaho Democrats.

Yes. It is extremely disappointing to see that close race for Idaho Superintendent of Public Instruction go to a demonstrably unqualified Republican politician. But we are well on our way to becoming far more competitive in the years to come with a consistent, smart, data-based effort.

We are pleased that you have not entirely ruled out the possibility of helping fund our organization, which works to put families, small businesses and communities first in Idaho. We are also encouraged that you care enough to send an angry note. We hope that you will engage with us more fully to learn that we are in fact growing the Idaho Democratic Party and are growing stronger.

Marisela was just 8 years old when she was dropped off in the desert, late at night. She doesn't remember what month it was, but she remembers how cold it was. They had a sandwich, from which she was given a few bites, and she had some bottled water which had frozen solid in the cold desert air. Her mother, father and three of her siblings had ridden a bus, and she doesn't quite recall how they went from the bus to the desert, but there they were, and they were going to have to walk all night long. Her father was carrying a younger brother, but Marisela was walking, and crying. read more »

This gritty tale in Haiku-like poetry takes place in 1968 — a year that saw the Tet Offensive, the assassinations of Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy, and many other legacies of fear and violence.

Chris Crowe, a professor of English at Brigham Young University, has published award-winning fiction and nonfiction for teenagers, poetry, essays, books, and many articles for academic and popular magazines. He married his high school sweetheart, Elizabeth, and they are the parents of four children and grandparents of two beautiful granddaughters. They live in Provo, Utah.

From the publisher:

It’s 1968, and war is not foreign to seventeen-year-old Ashe. His dogmatic, racist father married his passionate peace-activist mother when she became pregnant with him, and ever since, the couple, like the situation in Vietnam, has been engaged in a “senseless war that could have been prevented.”

When his high school history teacher dares to teach the political realities of the war, Ashe grows to better understand the situation in Vietnam, his family, and the wider world around him. But when a new crisis hits his parents’ marriage, Ashe finds himself trapped, with no options before him but to enter the fray.

Chris Crowe was born in Danville, Illinois, and attended schools in Illinois, New Mexico, and California before his parents settled down in Tempe, Arizona, where he graduated from McKemy Junior High and McClintock High School. He attended Brigham Young University on a football scholarship (and played in the 1974 Fiesta Bowl) and earned a BA in English. He taught English at McClintock High for 10 years while attending Arizona State University part-time, earning his masters and doctorate degrees.

He is the author of several books, most notably MISSISSIPPI TRIAL, 1955, which won several awards, including the 2003 International Reading Association's Young Adult Novel Award. His nonfiction book, GETTING AWAY WITH MURDER: THE TRUE STORY OF THE EMMETT TILL CASE, was an Jane Addams Honor book. His first children's book, JUST AS GOOD: HOW LARRY DOBY CHANGED AMERICA'S GAME, appeared in 2012. His newest book is a historical novel DEATH COMING UP THE HILL, scheduled to be released in October 2014.

Chris married his high school sweetheart, and they live in Provo, Utah, where he works in the English department at BYU. They are the parents of four children and grandparents of two lovely girls and three handsome boys. read more »

Is somebody trying to tell us something? We just reelected Gov. Otter for four more years earlier this month. Why are we suddenly being reassured that it'll be just fine if he steps down? - Sharon Fisher

Why thank you, Sharon.

Just three weeks after the eloection, we receive this report in Idaho news media:

Why aren't we being reassured, at this time, that one of the Boise State University assistant football coaches is ready to take over for head coach Bryan Harsin, just in case he can't coach?

Or ... isn't that supposed to be obvious?

The report, by Betsy Russel of the Spokesman Review, goes on to, somewhat arbitrarily, pound what should be obvious and already understood ...

BOISE – If newly re-elected 72-year-old Idaho Gov. Butch Otter didn’t complete his full third term, Idaho’s new governor would be Brad Little, the second-term lieutenant governor, rancher and former state senator who’s been toiling full-time in the part-time, low-paid post since Otter appointed him to it in 2009.

... That call already has come on a short-term basis: Little has served as acting governor on 247 days since he took office on Jan. 6, 2009, with the days per year sharply increasing over his time in office. In addition to serving as acting governor when the governor is out of state or incapacitated, Idaho’s lieutenant governor presides over the state Senate, where he breaks ties, and takes on other duties as assigned by the governor.

Certainly, there is as much, if not more interest in the Broncos high paid state officials, as there is in Butch.

So what Fisher pointed out is something that had popped in my mind when reading this, too.

In journalism terms, there is a classic -- Grand Canyon-sized -- "hole in the story."

There are lots of newly elected and appointed, very important officials around Idaho and the nation at this time.

The stable and well established Little, replacing the Otter in his equally comfortable position, seems to be one of the least worrisome scenarios.

Why this official?

Why now?

Talk of Butch stepping aside to allow Brad his turn at Governor has been around since the affable cowboy first became Idaho's chief executive.

"Idaho Education News has already reported that Ybarra did not vote in the 2012 general election, when voters overturned Propositions 1,2 and 3 after a contentious statewide debate over K-12 policy."

Any self-proclaimed educator who failed to vote in 2012 cannot continue to claim that title, must less declare herself "passionate about education." Ms. Ybarra's failure to vote in that election is an insult to those who worked hard to see the democratic process through to its end, with many of them putting their jobs and professional reputations on the line while doing so.

If state superintendent hopeful Sherri Ybarra votes on Election Day, it will be the first time the Republican has cast a ballot in a November general election while living in Mountain Home.

According to Elmore County election records, Ybarra has not voted for a governor, a state superintendent, a president or a state legislator in a general election since moving to Mountain Home in 1996. read more »

" ... when I go into some rural counties, I hear people say they just hate Congress, yet they'll still vote for [his opponent]," writes Richard Stallings.

I fist met Richard Stallings during a dinner/talk at the Unitarian Fellowship in Pocatello, Idaho about 10 years ago. I have positive memories of his warm style and profound grasp of the issues that matter.

Former U.S. Representative Stallings has devoted much of his career to public service and to improving the lives and prosperity of Idaho families. He served in Congress from 1984 to 1992.

Stallings is a candidate for the 2014 election. to again represent Idaho's Idaho's 2nd congressional district. Stallings also served in several other state and local political offices over the course of his 22-years of public service. To make a contribution please see this link.

When asked by Boise Weekly what he learned about his opponent from this latest GOP primary, Stallings said:

He's a coward. Even his supporters say he's a better legislator than what his voting record reflects. He's just afraid. He was terrified of [Bryan] Smith and, as a result, he was forced into some very bad decisions.

His refusal to deal with the minimum wage. That refusal keeps 100,000 Idahoans living in poverty. And it's costing the government more money because we end up providing more food stamps. It's an outrageous indignity, for no other reason than some political nastiness. It's the most inhumane thing I've ever seen done to the most vulnerable people in our society. Even Mitt Romney calls for an increase.

By not standing up to the Tea Party wing of his own party, he's become a lousy, lousy legislator. Another of his vulnerabilities is a lack of immigration reform. About 13 percent of Idaho's population is Hispanic, most of them documented. But they have undocumented friends and family that are hiding in the shadows, yet they're exploited by employers. I agree with Jeb Bush when he said many people had come to the United States illegally as an act of love. But his own party beat the tar out of him.

Your contribution will have an immediate impact on Richard Stallings's campaign.

During the time I spent representing the Second District of Idaho in the U.S. Congress, the issue of a pay raise for members of Congress came up for a vote before the house. I had committed to Idaho that I would not take a pay raise for myself and voted against this bill. It passed without my vote. Then it became necessary to make a decision on what to do with said pay raise. A few members (none from Idaho) returned the money to the treasury but, after much contemplation, my wife and I made the decision to try to help people in Idaho.

At that time, many people were hurting financially. Farmers, students and families were struggling. We made the decision to provide scholarship money to non-traditional students. These were people who had been victims of the economy and were struggling for new opportunities in life. It seemed to us that there were lots of funding sources for 18 year-old students but were extremely scarce for older people facing the same life changing experiences. In retrospect, we are grateful we had this opportunity. I wanted to share a letter we received from a young woman at that time. Her full name has not been included because we have not been able to contact her to obtain her permission to do so. She should be extremely proud of her accomplishment, hence reprinting this letter:

Dear Mr. Stallings,

It is very hard for me to put into words how I am feeling at this time. This morning I got up, fed my four children, hurried them off to school and then hurried off to school myself. In my religion class, I received the message that the scholarship office wanted to see me as soon as possible. When I sat in that office, my prayers were answered. I still cannot believe that I was chosen to receive this scholarship.

Is it legal for the Speaker of the Idaho House to push a bill through the State Legislature on behalf of a development company only after that company fires a political opponent and hires a political ally?

The answer is yes.

Is it ethical? You be the judge.

Back in 2007, a California development company pushed for a bill that would allow it to pay for an interchange on I-90 with the sales tax collected at a yet-to-be-built Cabela’s store located next to the interchange.

The bill appeared to be going nowhere. Then the company asked Speaker of the House Lawerence Denney for advice. Soon after, the company fired its lobbyist, a established moderate Republican who opposed Denney’s run for speaker, and hired Julie Ellsworth, a Denney supporter and former House member who lost her seat four months earlier.

After that, the bill sailed through the legislature.

The appearance of impropriety prompted calls for a “cooling off” period, a mandatory two-year break between legislating and lobbying.

Denney would have none of it. “I have no desire to dictate who can and cannot get a job working as a lobbyist,” he opined.

Days later, Denney changed his mind, announcing that he would co-sponsor a “cooling off” bill. He did so tepidly. ‘‘I’m still not sure it’s necessary, but in this business, perception is reality,’’ he said.

Unfortunately, the bill came too late in the session. It died in committee without a hearing.

The next year, a similar bill was referred to committee at the beginning of the session where it sat for months before dying without a hearing.

Give Denney credit. He’s right. Perception is reality in the business of government. Idaho’s Secretary of State’s office has a long tradition of honesty and impartiality. The Gem State doesn’t need that tarnished with cronyism and malfeasance.